Arriving by plane in Windhoek, Namibia, we were greeted by a young man with a bright smile and our name plate.

You never know if the guy standing there is a taxi driver or a tour guide. He handed us our tickets for the flight out to the lodge in the desert, so we assumed the latter. He started to walk us over to the departures section of the airport and helped Sue with her luggage. We walked straight past check-in, and around security, where our guide seemed to know everyone and be very popular! We walked out, and found ourselves on the “apron” of the airstrip! “That’s my plane” he said, pointing to a 6-seater Cessna, and we realised that our transfer was by private plane, and he was our pilot!

I clambered up into the front seat and enjoyed the instruments and views immensely. He showed us the navigation on the charts, and we got great views, particularly of the lodge as we flew over. Approaching the dirt landing strip, we did a complete circle to check for animals (!) and put down next to the awaiting jeep.